Martin Luther King Jr. Day march, program held in Bay Minette (with photo gallery, video)

BAY MINETTE, Alabama -- The recurring theme at Martin Luther King Jr. Day events in Bay Minette on Monday was that despite the progress of the past, work remains to be done in the future.

A crowd gathering at Kids Park prior to a march held signs reading "Power in voting," "Stop voter oppression" and "Get out and vote." Annie Williams, 55, of Stockton held a sign with a picture of King on the front and the words "vote" written along both sides of the portrait. The back of the sign read "Believe, Achieve, Believe."

"It’s an awesome day to me," she said "Every time I hear (King’s ‘I Have a Dream’) speech, I still have a dream for this country, too, just like he did. We’re caught up in the economical problems and everything right now, but it’s going to get better, because that dream’s still alive."

Williams, who had the chance to visit the spot where King was assassinated in Memphis, Tenn., said she believed the civil rights leader would have gone on to become president had he lived. She attends the Baldwin County Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Committee’s events every year, and was joined by her husband, brother and niece on Monday.

"It’s great," Williams said of attending with relatives. "Because it’s all about family, love and caring for each other."

Marchers sang "Ain’t Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me Around" and "We Shall Overcome" on a route that passed along Courthouse Square before ending at the John F. Rhodes Civic Center.

During the program, pastor Bennie Richardson II of Morning Star Baptist Church in Foley told the full auditorium that "What was a dream is now a mission."

Bay Minette Mayor Jamie Tillery said that God wishes all people to lift up one another. "It’s not just a dream," she said emphatically. "It is a commandment and we should be obedient. And may we not just talk the talk, but may we have the courage to walk that walk."

The event’s keynote speaker was Joe L. Reed, who retired earlier this month from his role as associate executive secretary of the Alabama Education Association. He is also chairman of the Alabama Democratic Conference. Reed touched on two primary subjects: politics, particularly the importance of voting, and education.

"I’m often asked: Why are you in politics?" he said. "Why are we here today? Why did Dr. King march to Selma? I have one answer: To use government as an instrument of good."

For the seventh consecutive year, events honoring King were also held in Loxley. A crowd of about 100 attended this year’s march and heard guest speaker Dr. Robert White of Alabama State University, according to event co-chair Ronnie McBride Jr.